How can I use video in my marketing if I only have a tiny budget?

Your question

I have seen a lot of companies using video in their advertising and on their websites. As a small company how do I create videos on a budget?

Our answer

Video is one of the fastest growing communication channels, and recent statistics show that it is a highly effective marketing communication tools:

78% of people watch videos online every week.

Customers are 64% more likely to purchase after viewing a single product video

52% of marketers worldwide name video as the type of content with the highest return on investment

There are several ways of incorporating video into your business activities, depending on your objectives. Here are some low-cost effective ways to include video in your marketing mix.

1) Explainer videos

Whilst highly polished corporate sales videos have their place, the explainer video is going from strength to strength. In reality it’s an informal sales video but the focus is on solving your customer’s problem.

In the video you should give people a quick and easy explanation of how your product or service will help solve their problem. This example from Pinterest is a great example of an explainer video.

2) Product videos

Product videos focus on the product itself and are really useful if your product is quite technical. You can highlight customer benefits of each of the features. Take a look at this example from Simply Hike demonstrating a tent.

3) Talking head interviews

Talking head videos are normally simply the head and shoulders of a person being interviewed straight to camera. Vloggers (video bloggers) create informal videos, while big corporates also use talking head videos for internal communications briefings.

This is probably the easiest style of video to create yourself on a small budget, but it’s well worth looking into lighting, sound and editing requirements before you make a start. A poor quality video will do your brand no favours at all. Check out motivational expert Tony Robbins speaking to camera.

4) Animation

If you’re camera shy or if you’d like to create snappy videos that get a lot across in a short time then animation is a great option. It’s used extensively for digital adverts on social media and can be lower cost to get created professionally. Take a look at this animation for Ebay for charity by Janno Media.

5) Live video

Persicope and Facebook Live have taken live video streaming to a whole new level. If your business lends itself to live streaming, then make the most of this trend. It’s a great way of connecting with your social audience and getting instant engagement.

You’ll need to stream content that people are going to be interested in. Are you at a red carpet event, a conference? Can you give a behind the scenes view of something? Could you broadcast regularly with new exercise or diet tips, or give a tip of the day?

Five key tips for making marketing videos

There’s some great marketing videos out there, but also some really poor examples which have done more harm than good. Here are some top tips for video from expert Matt Wallace at Janno Media, a video agency with experience creating effective videos:

Keep your video short and to the point. On average a third of viewers drop out after 30 seconds so you don’t have long to get your point across.

Your video should answer your customer’s questions – ‘what does it do’, ‘how do I’, ‘is it right for me’ – rather than being told from the company’s perspective.

Don’t forget to include your company and product name, a link to your website and a strong call to action. It should be clear what the viewer should do next.

Get a professionally produced video if at all possible – the results will repay the cost many times over and it will enhance your brand.

Once you have your video remember to promote it to attract viewers. There’s no point hiding it on your website and expecting people to find it. Email it out, promote it on social media and use it whenever possible.

What’s your experience of using video for marketing? What has worked for you?

Answered by our marketing agony aunt Roisin Kirby from Refresh Marketing. Let her know of any marketing questions you need help with by joining her on Facebook.